Great white eaten, devoured by much larger mystery predator

Sharks are known as the greatest predators of the sea. But what happens when the hunter becomes the hunted? A 9ft. great white shark went up against a predator of its own, but this one didn't come out on top.

on.aol.com

Apparently, a 9-foot great white shark was completely devoured by an unknown larger predator 11 years ago and is now the subject of a documentary ("Hunt for the Super Predator") to air this June. Cinematographer David Riggs witnessed the great white being eaten by a mysterious sea creature, but it has been elusive for over a decade, citing a June 9 IBT report via Yahoo News.

Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images

Riggs, a seasoned photographer, says a beast of unknown type "savagely" devoured a great white shark that was tagged just four months prior off the coast of Australia's Southern Ocean. Unfortunately, the shark's attacker struck so fast that Riggs was not able to capture the unprecedented incident on film. The tag later washed up on shore.

A great white devoured by another creature sounds like a dramatized "Megalodon" special by Discovery Channel during "Shark Week." However, the upcoming documentary hosted by the Smithsonian Channel , is the result of a real-life shark sighting.

Riggs share the 2003 account of the shocking encounter:

The question that not only came to my mind but everyone's mind who was involved was, 'what did that?' It was obviously eaten. What's gonna eat a shark that big? What could kill a 9ft great white?"

Citing information from the documentary and experts, possible culprits in the great white shark attack are large fabled lizard-like creatures -- the Kraken and Godzilla come to mind. Other plausible sea predators are killer whales, giant octopuses, or possible a larger shark of the same species.

Riggs says data contained from the tracking tag revealed a sudden and dramatic change in temperature (from 44.6 degrees Fahrenheit to 77 degrees Fahrenheit) in mere seconds. This is significant because the higher temperature suggests the great white was devoured by a much larger creature and the tag was inside the warmer body. However, the higher heat is too low to indicate the unidentified creature was a mammal.

Looking at the profile of the animal that ate it, 26 degrees, that's pretty high but not enough to be a mammal but it's something seriously huge to sustain that temperature - the larger the animal, the more capable it is of an elevated temperature,” Riggs said.

Had remnants of the dead shark remained behind, the identity of the predator could have possibly been determined by its bite marks and patterns. Nonetheless, the lack of any tissue or carcass suggests the great white shark was completely devoured, bones and all. Imagine that?

The new shark documentary airs on June 25. Check your local listings for details.